Two additional miles of MnPASS Express Lanes open on I-35W

ROSEVILLE, Minn. — Motorists on Interstate 35W in Burnsville have the choice of a more predictable commute time beginning today with the opening of approximately two additional miles of northbound MnPASS Express Lanes between Burnsville Parkway and Southcross Drive, just north of the I-35W/I-35E split.

“I-35W MnPASS Express Lanes offer all motorists less congestion on one of the busiest roads in Minnesota,” said Brian Kary, freeway operations engineer.

MnPASS Express Lanes move 50 percent more people than regular lanes and provide transit riders faster, congestion-free service because buses can always use the lane. Traffic lanes adjacent to MnPASS lanes remain open to all vehicles and are less congested because of MnPASS.

Crews also constructed new bus shoulders and noise walls, resurfaced the pavement and improved drainage in the area.

MnDOT will activate Smart Lanes on the same section of I-35W this winter. Smart Lanes are electronic signs located over lanes of traffic that provide real-time information to help motorists make informed decisions about their commute.

Buses, carpools and motorcyclists can use the MnPASS Express Lanes for free. Solo motorists with a MnPASS transponder can choose to use the lanes during rush hours by paying a fee averaging $1.25.

For a limited time, MnPASS customers entering the lanes just north of the I-35W/I-35E split will not see a price sign until Burnsville Parkway. Additional price signs south of Burnsville Parkway will be installed in spring 2012. Generally, MnPASS customers see a price sign before they enter the lanes.

Commuters can open a prepaid MnPASS account in less than 10 minutes online at www.mnpass.net, by calling the MnPASS Customer Service Center at 1-866-EZ-RIDE4       (1-866-397-4334), or by stopping in the Commuter Connection office at US Bank Plaza – Skyway at 220 S. Sixth St., Suite 230. The MnPASS Welcome Kit will arrive in the mail with easy instructions for installing the transponder in the vehicle. For more information on MnPASS, visit www.mnpass.org/.

The next MnPASS Express Lanes are proposed to be built from 2013-15 on I-35E between Pennsylvania Avenue and Little Canada Road, signifying the first MnPASS investment in the eastern Twin Cities Metro area and an essential link for people commuting between downtown St. Paul and suburbs to the north.

For travel information anywhere in Minnesota, visit www.511mn.org.

HOURCAR Introduces Student Rate Plan

HOURCAR announces the introduction of a student rate plan available to all undergraduate college students. Many college students’ lifestyles are well-suited to membership in a car-sharing organization: urban college campuses throughout the Twin Cities are located in walkable, bike-friendly, and transit-rich neighborhoods where students can easily meet their daily needs without a car. With HOURCAR, those students have access to a car when they need it, whether for shopping trips, internship and volunteer opportunities, or evenings out, while they avoid the cost and inconvenience of keeping a car on campus.

Undergraduate college students can now enjoy HOURCAR’s lowest hourly and daily rates for a $35 annual fee and no application fee. With locations at Augsburg, Minneapolis College of Art and Design, University of St. Thomas, Macalester College, and Hamline University, as well as throughout neighborhoods in Minneapolis and Saint Paul, thousands of college students throughout the Twin Cities have easy access to a car and only pay for their usage.

Usage rates on HOURCAR’s student plan are $6 per hour and $0.25 per mile, with daily rates of $55 during the week and $65 on the weekend available on select vehicles.

Minneapolis completes Transportation Infrastructure Study

NEWS FROM CITY OF MINNEAPOLIS:

The Minneapolis City Council’s Transportation & Public Works Committee heard a presentation of a Public Works Transportation Infrastructure Study. Although the City continuously monitors the condition of its streets, bridges, and other infrastructure, this study takes a thorough look at what the future of our infrastructure will be, based on different funding scenarios over the next two decades. Minneapolis is the first city in the state to do an infrastructure study of this magnitude and complexity, and City policy makers and managers will use the results to help make informed decisions about investment in our transportation infrastructure.

Minneapolis, like cities and states across the county, faces significant fiscal challenges in maintaining and improving its infrastructure. In order to have better information about the challenge Minneapolis is facing, Public Works conducted this study over the past year. The results will help City leaders prioritize the infrastructure funding that is available and to work on long-term strategies to maintain and improve our infrastructure.

The study examined bridges, streets, alleys, street lights, and traffic signals. Minneapolis has 1,100 miles of streets, 400 miles of alleys, 89 City-owned vehicular bridges, about 800 intersections with traffic signals, and about 16,000 City-owned streetlights.

Mayor R.T. Rybak and the City Council, have increased infrastructure funding in the last few years. 2011 is the third year of the $27.5 million Infrastructure Acceleration Program, which supplements the City’s existing infrastructure plan. Street projects are generally funded through the City’s Capital Improvements Program and the general maintenance program. However, those projects were not keeping pace with the overall decline of street conditions. The Infrastructure Acceleration Program increased the number of street projects done each year, slowing the decline of street conditions.

Metro Transit Ridership Grows to 60 Million Through Q3; on Pace to Top 80 Million in 2011

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL – (Oct. 21) – More than 60 million served.

That’s the word from Metro Transit: Customers boarded its buses and trains more than 60 million times in the first nine months of 2011, a 3.6 percent increase over the same period last year.

Ridership so far this year is 60.6 million, or 2.1 million more rides than the nine-month period in 2010.

“Thanks to strong ridership results in the first nine months, we are nearly 900,000 rides ahead of the pace we need to achieve our 2011 ridership goal of 80 million,” said Metro Transit General Manager Brian Lamb. “The 80-milion mark has been exceeded only once in the last 30 years.”

Bus ridership accounted for all of the year-over-year gains, posting a 4.5 percent increase to 52.3 million.

Ridership increased in all three types of bus service. Urban local routes – the heart of Metro Transit’s all-day service – increased 4.3 percent, or 1.8 million rides to 43.8 million. Ridership on freeway-oriented express bus routes was up 5.1 percent, or 351,000 rides, to 7.3 million while rides on suburban crosstown routes grew 5.9 percent, or 70,500 rides, to 1.3 million.

Both the Hiawatha light-rail and Northstar commuter rail lines saw slight ridership declines in the January-September period – Hiawatha down 1.6 percent to 7.8 million and Northstar down 1.9 percent to 552,000. Although both rail services have seen increases in average weekday commuter ridership (Hiawatha up 1.3% and Northstar up 6.6%), they have been affected by fewer special-event rides to Twins and Vikings games and other large-scale downtown events. Northstar was also impacted by a freight train derailment near Fridley in mid-July halting all rail service on the BNSF Railways track for several days. Hiawatha light-rail is on pace to deliver the second highest annual ridership in the 7-year-old line’s history; last year was the highest at 10.5 million rides.

Student ridership is among the 2011 highlights. The nearly 20,000 students at the University of Minnesota who hold U-Passes took 2.8 million rides, up 1.1 percent, and students at other post-secondary schools took 1.1 million rides, up 2.8 percent. Teenagers using a new fare tool offered by interested high schools took 387,600 rides.

TRANSIT TECH TOOL USE BOOMING

Through September, 221,000 individuals used Go-To Cards to pay fares on Metro Transit buses and trains – more cards than were used in all of 2010. Go-To Cards can be reloaded and managed by web or phone and now make up 41 percent of all fare transactions. More than 13,000 Go-To cardholders have enrolled in Ride to Rewards, the transit industry’s first points-based loyalty program, which was launched late in 2010.

The agency’s website, metrotransit.org, topped 250,000 individual visitors to the site for the first time in the month of August and exceeded 750,000 monthly visits for the first time in September. The online Trip Planner notched five of the top 10 highest-use days in its 10-year history in the 3rd quarter. NexTrip, which provides real-time predicted departures from nearly 15,000 transit stops throughout the Twin Cities, was used more than 3.7 million times via metrotransit.org and metrotransit.org/mobile.

“Easy access to tools that allow customers to instantly plan trips, pay fares with just the touch of a card and see departures in real-time provides a new level of convenience,” said Lamb. “Offering customer service in person, by phone and increasingly over the Internet and via mobile devices attracts new customers to buses and trains.”

Metro Transit is a service of the Metropolitan Council.

Metro Transit receives $3.2 million in FTA funding

NEWS FROM METRO TRANSIT:

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced that transit providers across the nation will receive a share of $928.5 million in federal funds for more than 300 public transportation projects.

Metro Transit will receive $3.2 million for two projects: $2.6 million for improved customer facilities in downtown St. Paul and $600,000 for an alternatives analysis study of transit options in the Midtown Corridor in south Minneapolis.

Downtown St. Paul facilities

Plans for the first project call for new transit shelters at stops along 5thand 6th streets and Cedar and Minnesota in downtown St. Paul, in addition to NexTrip real-time route information and streetscape improvements. Existing customer facilities along those streets are 18 years old and not consistent with the level of service that Metro Transit aspires to provide, said Metro Transit’s Facilities Planning Manager Maurice Roers. The project is motivated by Metro Transit’s desire to provide a strong connection between bus service and the new Central Corridor (Green Line) light-rail transit service in downtown St. Paul, he said.

Construction of the new facilities is expected to start next fall.

Alternatives analysis study

While the Midtown Corridor is currently served by high frequency local and limited-stop bus routes, the alternatives analysis will explore a broader range of transit options there, specifically streetcar and bus rapid transit on Lake Street and streetcar, light rail and dedicated busway along the Midtown Greenway just north of 29th Street.

These options, combined with associated improvements in customer facilities and vehicles, would increase the speed and attractiveness of transit service in the corridor. The study is expected to start in early 2012 and be finished in 12-15 months, said Transit Planner Michael Mechtenberg.

Each project will also receive funding through a 20 percent local match.

Make It Better Challenge wants to hear your healthy Minneapolis story!

NEWS FROM CITY OF MINNEAPOLIS:

We want to know what it takes to make things better where you live, work and play in Minneapolis. Take theMake It Better Challenge and tell us what kinds of changes you are making to create healthier communities by providing greater access to healthy food or more opportunities for physical activity. The Making it Better campaign brings people together to discover and celebrate the stories of these residents.

Community members can share what they are doing to make their schools, neighborhoods or workplaces healthier and win weekly prizes, and one of your stories will be chosen as part of a new set of advertisements showing how people are making it better in their community.

The Making it Better Challenge runs through Oct. 31, 2011. Examples of eligible submissions include the parents and educators in north Minneapolis working together to provide healthier snacks at school, employers in Seward encouraging active commuting to work and neighbors all over getting together to improve pedestrian safety. Everyone who lives, works or attends school in Minneapolis may submit their stories at www.makingitbettermn.org. Complete rules and guidelines are available online.

The Challenge submission that receives the most “thumbs up” on the website will be featured in a new Making it Better advertisement that will debut in January 2012.

Each challenge participant will receive a stainless steel water bottle. In addition, each week during the submission period, three participants will be randomly drawn to choose from one of five prize packages:

• Take-a-Hike: The winner and five friends will each win a yearlong pass to the Minnesota State Parks system and a backpack filled with a t-shirt, healthy snacks and a pedometer.
• To the Market: The winner and five friends will each receive a cookbook and a $50 certificate to a local farmers market or co-op. To help carry home all their treasures, each person will receive a tote bag.
• Sous-Chefs: The winner and up to 11 friends will participate in a group cooking session and dinner led by Kate T. Moore, host of Family Dinner Minneapolis. Kate will come to the location of your choice and help your group prepare a healthy dinner together, teaching and cooking throughout the process.
• Ski, Skate or Snowboard: A day of winter fun, choosing up to 12 people cross country skiing at aMinneapolis Park and Recreation ski trail or ice skating at the Minneapolis Depot or up to five people downhill skiing or snowboarding at Buck Hill. Afterwards, warm up with hot cider and a healthy lunch. This package includes ski, skate or snowboard rentals.
• Get into the Groove: Outfit your school, workplace or neighborhood with some new equipment and get everyone moving with a $500 gift certificate to Gopher Sport. Choose from scooters, jump ropes, mats, basketballs and more.

About Making it Better

Making it Better seeks to bring people together to discover, celebrate and share stories of Minneapolis residents who are working to make their communities healthier by increasing access to healthy foods and physical activity opportunities. The campaign focuses on three primary areas where healthy changes are taking place – neighborhoods, schools and the workplace. Throughout the campaign, Minneapolis residents are invited to share their ideas for making it better where they live, learn, work and play. For more information, visit www.makingitbettermn.org or follow the campaign atwww.facebook.com/MakingitBetterMinneapolis or twitter.com/BetterMpls.

Communities Putting Prevention to Work in Minneapolis

Making it Better is made possible by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as part ofCommunities Putting Prevention to Work (CPPW), a federally funded initiative that supports policy, systems and environmental changes to reduce obesity, a primary cause of chronic disease. Effectively addressing some of the key behaviors that contribute to obesity – lack of physical activity and poor nutrition – can have a significant impact on the health of a community.

Minneapolis is one of 50 communities nationwide selected to participate in the national CPPW initiative, which is being led locally by the City of Minneapolis Department of Health and Family Support with guidance from the Minnesota Department of Health. The Making it Better campaign is being launched concurrently in Minneapolis and Olmsted County.

Additional weeklong westbound I-94 lane closure in Minneapolis begins Oct. 27

Motorists will experience delays as the left lane of westbound I-94 between Portland Avenue and Lyndale Avenue closes for approximately one week beginning at 10 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 27.

The lane closure is needed for overhead sign foundation construction and barrier work as part of the I-94 improvement project. The lane will reopen by 6 a.m. Friday, Nov. 4, weather permitting.

In addition, daytime lane closures on eastbound I-94 will occur Oct. 25-27. The right lane of eastbound I-94 between Cedar Avenue and Huron Boulevard will be closed from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. on Oct. 25 and Oct. 26 for paving. The right lane of eastbound I-94 between Cedar Avenue and Hwy 280 will be closed from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. on Oct. 27 for paving. These daytime lane closures will be in addition to the current long-term closure of the outside lane and shoulder.

Motorists should also continue to expect overnight lane closures in either direction of I-94 as needed.

The I-94 improvement project between downtown Minneapolis and downtown St. Paul includes resurfacing, which will create a smoother ride for motorists and extend the lifespan of the roadway. The project also includes drainage improvements, bridge maintenance work, reconstruction of the shoulders, realignment of the lanes and smart lane technology to improve safety and congestion.

For more project information visit http://www.dot.state.mn.us/metro/projects/i94resurfacing/phase2.html.

For real-time traveler information anywhere in Minnesota visit www.511mn.org or dial 5-1-1.

I-35W lane closure scheduled for Oct. 25 in Minneapolis

Minneapolis motorists may encounter delays as the right lane of the ramp from southbound I-35W to westbound I-94/eastbound Hwy 55, between Washington Avenue and I-94 closes at 4 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 25.

The lane will reopen by 2 p.m. the same day. Access to westbound I-94 and eastbound Hwy 55 will remain available.

The lane closure is needed as crews remove temporary pavement as part of the Central Corridor Light Rail construction project.

For more information about the project please visithttp://www.metrocouncil.org/transportation/ccorridor/centralcorridor.asp.

For real-time traveler information anywhere in Minnesota visit www.511mn.org or dial 5-1-1.

Incentivize your Employees with Commuter Connection Gift Cards

Commuter Connection now offers gift cards for the Commuter Connection Store. Gift Cards are an easy way to incentivize your employees to use transit or to make healthy commuting options. Gift Cards can be redeemed at the Commuter Connection store for transit fare or bicycle accessories.

To order gift cards contact: Bill Andre, Outreach Coordinator, bandre@commuter-connection.org, 612-335-5910

New design for a 21st-century Peavey Plaza unveiled

NEWS FROM CITY OF MINNEAPOLIS

City of Minneapolis officials and landscape architect oslund.and.associates unveiled today the design for the revitalization of Peavey Plaza. The new design reinterprets signature elements of M. Paul Friedberg’s 1974 design—below-grade central plaza, water features, informal terraced seating and formal plantings of Honey Locust trees—while creating a premier public space for the 21^st century that will be safe and accessible to everyone.

Public comment accepted through Oct. 24

The public is invited to view the design and ask questions of Minneapolis landscape architect, Tom Oslund of oslund.and.associates at an open house on Wednesday, Oct. 19 between 4:30 – 6 p.m., at Orchestra Hall, 1111 Nicollet Mall.  The public will be able to comment on the design, via the Peavey Plaza website through Oct. 24, 2011.

The new design allows for flexible uses from active programming to passive use. Design elements include two expansive pools with dancing fountains; a shaded pergola with adequate infrastructure to house all food vendors; natural seating; flexible performance space designed for event and non-event days; shallow still pools that can be drained and accommodate up to 1,500 chairs set up for events; a water wall near the 12^thStreet entrance; a prominent accessible ramp to all grades of the plaza (the deepest is 7 feet below Nicollet Mall grade); and active-use options planned for grassy areas on the southeast corner.

Replacing the plaza’s existing elements and preserving the current design would not result in an improved design that is safe, functional and accessible for everyone. The current plaza design has numerous problems that cannot be fixed by restoration alone:  Peavey Plaza is not ADA-compliant; its materials and systems have not stood the test of time and have proven costly to operate and maintain; its concrete and fountains are severely eroded; it does not comply with modern storm-water regulations; its infrastructure is inadequate for event use; its trees are severely damaged due to root constraints and utility lines along trunks. In addition, the plaza is plagued by inappropriate social behaviors and falls well short of contemporary Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design standards that help to reduce crime through better design principles.

The new design is a solution to these problems and will allow for a more cost-effective and economically sustainable approach to operations and maintenance. For example, the new water feature will use only a fraction of the amount of water that the current reflecting pool uses; its water can be turned off and stored; and unlike Peavey Plaza today, it complies with contemporary storm-water regulations by keeping storm-water drainage separately from the treated water-fountain systems.  The revitalized Peavey Plaza will also add elements that event organizers require but that are current lacking, such as power and data access, which will help make the plaza more economically sustainable.

The vision for the signature plaza was shaped by the community through open houses, interviews with users and stakeholders, and a public, online survey. A 20-person Community Engagement Committee—comprised of neighbors and stakeholders—has  met over the last 19 months to share their input regarding Peavey programming and design.

The $8-$10 million project is supported by $2 million in state bond funding, with the balance to come from private contributions that the Mayor and representatives of the Minnesota Orchestral Association have committed to raising. The City and the Minnesota Orchestra are collaborating in the revitalization of Peavey Plaza, which is adjacent to Orchestra Hall, in conjunction with the Orchestra’s $50 million renovation of Orchestra Hall.

oslund.and.associates was selected by the City, through a public interview process, in 2010.  HR&A, a New-York-based real estate and economic development consulting firm, was hired by the City to assist with space programming. Their recommendations informed the design, operations and maintenance of the plaza.

Groundbreaking is tentatively set for spring 2012 with a grand opening in summer 2013.